Court proceedings start again in homicide retrial

Court proceedings in the retrial of a Topeka man whose death penalty conviction was overturned will begin Thursday.

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By Associated Press

Butler County Times Gazette

By Associated Press

Posted May. 7, 2013 at 3:00 PM

By Associated Press
Posted May. 7, 2013 at 3:00 PM

Topeka, Kan.

Court proceedings in the retrial of a Topeka man whose death penalty conviction was overturned will begin Thursday.

A status conference for Phillip D. Cheatham Jr. is scheduled in Shawnee County District Court, with the focus on scheduling the upcoming trial.

Cheatham was convicted in 2005 of capital murder in the deaths of Annette Roberson and Gloria Jones and wounding a third woman at a Topeka home in December 2003. The Kansas Supreme Court overturned his conviction in January, citing ineffective counsel from his attorney.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports (http://bit.ly/ZDO8Bp ) prosecutors have 90 days to start Cheatham retrial unless he seeks a continuance.

Cheatham will be retried on charges of capital murder, first-degree premeditated murder, attempted first-degree murder, aggravated battery and criminal possession of a weapon.